Attachment for potato-diggers.



PATENIBD JAN. 23, 1906. G. E. OHUTE. ATTACHMENT FOR POTATO DIGGERS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 27, 1905.

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UNITED sTATns PATENT OFFICE.

chosen CHUTE, oF PRINOETO MINNESOTA. ATTACHMENT FOR POTATO4D'IGGIE'RS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 27, 1905; Serial No. 280,302.

To an whom/fit may concern: 7

- Be it known that I, GEORGE .E. CHUTE, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Princeton, in the county of- Millelacs and State of Minnesota, have invented Qcertain new and useful Improvements in Attachments for Potato-Diggers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein'to the accompanying drawings.

.'Itis=afurt tion to provide a device. of this characterin- 1 said attachin This-invention has relation-to certain new and useful improvements in attachments for potato-diggers, and has for its object to providea device which may readily be attached to a potato-digger, principally designed for a potato-digger of the elevator type,- whereby} an attendant ma readily sift or remove all foreign matter delivered with potatoes to the receiving-basket or other receptacle.

- It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device of this character which will be extremely light, so that the att'endant'can readily lift the samein order .to a row' permit of its being turned at the end of when the digger s'being turned.

er object of the present invenwhich provision is made for the accommodation of a basketor like-receptacle to receive the potatoes from the-elevator o'fthe potatodigger, for the accommoda'tionof an. attendant, and for the accommodation of' one ormoreempty baskets, or. receptacles so placed as to be withinready reach of the attendantv when desired. 1

A still further object oftnepresent invention is to provide a device of this character with a novel form of attaching or hitching means for securing the same to the potato digger, said;attaching or hitching means be- 1ng such as to insure the true following of. the

' scribed an then rods. being partly brokenaway.

' the potato-digger, a width being also of such form as -to part cularly pointed out. in the claims;

. In describing the inventionindetailrefi 'erence is had to the accompanying drawings,-

formingv a; part of this application, and wherein like numerals of reference indicate whi Figure 1 'is a planview of my improved at,

.tachment, conventionallyshowin g a part of aj potato-digger with the attachments secured thereto.

ig. '2 is a-detached perspective attachment, one of the-hitching- 3 is a view of the detach slightly spread apart to show how thes'ame maybe enlarged, and Fig. 4* is a plan; view hitchin -rod's. Thad which is adapted to drag in the same manner as a sled in the furrow made by the potatodi ger-2; I have herein shown the -p0t3.tO-Cligg61' in but a conventional for1n,.'

ment does not'r'elate to the p'otato-di ger per i Patented J an. 23,1906.

like parts throughout the-several iews, in

ed view of one of the hitching-rings of one of these rings and apart of one of the' evice comprises asledslike member 1 as my 'improv'ese, but only-to the attachment to e 0011- Q nectedthereto, and hence illustration of any particular type of potato-diggeris deemed unnecessary.

The sled-like member 1 in practice is made generally out of a hard-wood plank,-usually of about two inches in thickness and of a suffir cient width to follow the furrow made by of approximately eighteen inches being general y sufficient and a length of approximately feet being sufficie'rit to give the desired'accommodations for the attendant. and for the receptacles in which the otatoes. from the digger are received. T 1e sled vmember .1 ispreferably beveled or nosed-at itsfront end, as shown at 2, and on the upper face thereof at said front end is ac'ro'ss' piece 3, which may be bolted or otherwise firmly affixed to the member. In said.'cross-piece central of its length is affixed an eyelet 4, a link 5 connectingsaid eyelet with a similar eyeletfi, which is carried by an" evener-barJ, central of the len th of said bar. The .evener-bar 7 is of co'nsiferably'greater length than'the widthof the sled member 1, sothat its ends extend some distance beyond each side' of said sled member, and this evener bar carries near each end an eyelet 8 to which eyelets are attachedon'e end of the v hitching-rods :9. The other ends of these hitching-iocls connect with necks of rings 11, Which rings are adapted to be engaged With the axle ofxthe potato-digger'potwith the wheel-boxes, or at any otherpoint that may be found most desirable or convenient.

' In practice I have generally attached these rings to thewheelboxes, and to make such attachment the wheels are removed and the,

rings placed over the boxes and the wheel ,again placed on the axle. Topermit ofthe engagement, of the rings with the wheelboxes, the necks 10 are generally .s'plit, as shown at 12, so asto provide for the spread-. ing of the rings, and after they have been engaged with the Whee1-boxes the split necks may beclosed up, soas' to be engaged'with the eyelets or the inner ends of-the hitching rods-9, and it will be observed that these eyeletsmay be inserted into the necks before the closing'of the latter,-thus notnecessitating the opening of'the eyelets in the hitchingrods to'make'the connection, a y,

' Theidevice' in practice is so constructed that the forward portion thereof will'be' un-' der the rear end of the diggen-whereby the potatoes delivered from the elevator 2"of saiddigger. will beinto a basket or like receptacle 14, which rests on'ithe sled member 1 I Suitablypositioned on this sled member ..1 is

a seat 15, which may be of any desired form and may be fastened rigidly or simply set loose on the sled, member, and-I have. generally used a loose seatand in the form of abox, as showniasan inverted box will serve to remain more seeur'ely'in the position in which ithas'b'een placed on the sled member than any seat which had merely four supporting.- legs engaging with the sled member; Near the rear end'of the sled member Isecure a tender 16 the top 'cross-bar 'of which is generally curved' .re'arwardly, in order, to form a guard for an empty'bask'ejt o rreceptacle 17, and this fender also serves as a 'handle by which theattendantcan lift the rear end of the attachment't'o facilitatetheturning of the same at theend of r a row. Sufficient space-is provided bet'weenthe seat 1,5and the fender for one 'or'mo re empty baske ceptacles. I p With the above description i the construction of thedcvice'w clear, and it will beobserved aiaadevice may be attachedto anyelevator-diggeliwith in the presence ot two witnesses.

11 U E. aWitnesses; I

at the best a few minor changes in-the hitching or attaching means.

attendant sits on the box, and as the potatoes In operation the.

are delivered from the elevator 2 into the basket 14 the attendant picks out all foreign matter which the digger does not sift out, and when the basket 14 is filled the attendant is in position tofreach the-empty basket 17, which he slides into place under the discharge end of the elevator as heslidesthe filledbasket off onto the ground. The filled basket is'dumpcd onto a pile or into awagon, as the case requires, and left in position where on the return trip of the digger, hemay-reach it without leaving, his seat.

In the practice of the invention it will of prising aplank adapted to drag on the ground I and having a cross-piece secured to theupper face thereof at the forward endlofthe plank, an evenr-barihitched centrally. between its ends to saidcross-piecefa pair of hitchingrods attached to said evener-bar, one near each end, and hitchingerings connected to the other ends'ofsai'd' hitching-rods.

2. An attachment for potato-diggeracomprising .asled-like member in the form of a plank adapted to drag onthe ground, a guardfender supported thereby adjacent. the rear end of the plank, an evener-bar pivoted centrally ofits length to the forward end of the plank, apair of hitching-rodshaving their one end piVQtalIyattached to the evener-bar,

and meanscarried by the other end of said rods for attaching them to a vehicle.

In testimony wgh'ereof-Iiaifix my signature j CHAsqAr- DIOKEY1- I IRA-G. STANLEY. Wan: 

